Instapot Birria Tacos with Consomme
Instapot Birria Tacos with Consomme
Cheesy and spicy birria tacos with half of the cook time thanks to the instapot.
Finally! I’ve written my version of Birria Tacos- the newest star of taco lovers’ lives (lol). Birria is a Mexican stew served at most celebratory events. It traditionally consists of stewed meats, chiles, seasonings, and sometimes even fruit. The dish can be made with red meats such as oxtail, goat, and most famously- beef chuck. It can be served as a stew or served in dishes such as tacos, quesadillas, ramen, and even burritos. If you were to get this dish in any Mexican kitchen or restaurant, it would be prepared in a stew pot, but in this recipe, I’m sharing how I’ve adapted this recipe for my favorite kitchen essential- my instapot!
Making birria tacos in your home is much easier than you’d expect. I start with close to four pounds of barbacoa, a stewing beef that originates from the Caribbean. You’ll also need dried peppers, I picked mine up from Prince Valley Market located in Mexicantown, Detroit with the rest of the ingredients. The peppers cost less than $15 and are honestly as authentic as you can get. If you can’t get to the market, I’d try the ethnic aisle in most grocery stores and markets.
Below is the peppers needed for the recipe including a dried description:
Guajillo chilies, sweet and smoky
Ancho chilies, mild and smoky
Mexican chilies, mild and sweet
Chile de Arbol, spicyyy. you’ll only need 1.
Along with chilies, you’ll need ingredients such as a cinnamon stick, grated ginger, tomato paste, Mexican oregano, cumin, coriander seeds, garlic cloves, beef stock, and apple cider vinegar. All of these profiles, the stock, and meats will create a flavorful broth called consomé which is perfect for dipping your tacos. In this recipe, I decided to skip straining the broth and used my immersion blender to make a thicker sauce using the re-hydrated chilies.
Be sure to serve with diced Spanish onions, fresh lime, and chopped cilantro. This has become a “taco Tuesday” favorite in my home! Tag me in your pics at @elle.thefoodie, and eat up!
What You Need:
3 pounds of Barbacoa, or chuck roast, short ribs, oxtail, or beef shank
2 ½ Olive Oil
1 large Spanish or White Onion, thinly sliced, save 1½ diced for serving
7 Garlic Cloves
3 tsp Tomato paste
1 Cinnamon Stick, or 1 tsp of ground cinnamon
2 Bay Leaves, I hate when he does too
3 tsp Dried Mexican Oregano
1½ tsp Ground Cumin
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
3 cups of Beef Stock
2 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
3 Dried Ancho chilies, seeded
2 Dried Mexican chilies, seeded
3 Dried Guajillo chilies, seeded
1 Dried Chile de Arbol, optional and seeded
6 to 8 Corn Tortillas
3 to 4 cups of Mexican Melting Cheese or Cotija
Cilantro, for serving
Limes, for serving
What to Do:
Set your instapot to the “sear” setting. Once the pot is hot, add the dried peppers and cook them until you begin to smell them. Remember, the more burnt they are, the more bitter they will begin to smell. We just want to wake them up! Remove from heat after 3 to 5 minutes.
While the peppers are cooking, season the beef with salt and pepper. Remove the peppers from the instapot and set them aside.
Brown meat in the instapot with 2 tbsp of olive oil. Brown the meat on both sides for 5 minutes. Remove once browned.
While the instapot is still hot, add in the onions and garlic and saute for 3 to 4 minutes. Add in the tomato paste, cinnamon stick, and the remaining seasonings.
Next, add in the beef stock followed by the apple cider vinegar, dried peppers, and seared meat chunks. Be sure to salt if needed.
Close the pressure lid on your instapot and set it on “pressure cook” for 45 minutes. Once the 40 minutes are done, let the instapot natural release for 15 to 20 minutes.
Remove the meat for the instapot and shred with two forks. I like to pour a cup of broth from the instapot on the shredded meat to keep it juicy.
Lastly, my favorite. Use an immersion blender or pour your broth mixture into a blender to create the thick consomé. If not, strain the broth before serving it with tacos.
To prepare the tacos, dish each tortilla into the consomé and saute in a greased frying pan or griddle. Sprinkle on some cheese and birria meat and top the taco with diced onions and cilantro.
Don’t forget the limes and tag me in your pictures at @elle.thefoodie!